Domaine Michel Juillot, Burgundy | 538 Wine Notes

2014 Mercurey ‘Le Meix Juillot’

Recent years have been grim for red Burgundy lovers. Rising demand worldwide and several consecutive microscopic vintages have combined to send prices soaring to the vertigo-inducing heights once reserved for cult cabernets and other wines better suited to luxury goods. The times are especially bleak for young would-be Burgundy lovers, who can only drool with envy as they hear about the wonders of grand cru bottles enjoyed by their parents or grandparents back when prices were still within the reach of ordinary incomes. Another option is to look outside the Côte d’Or, directly south to the adjacent Côte Chalonnaise. As in the Côte d’Or, wines from the primary red-wine appellations, Rully, Givry and Mercurey, must be made from Pinot Noir.

To the north of Givry and Montagny, and located in the northern dead center of the Côte Chalonnaise, Mercurey is the limestone bank's most common and important village. To many, it combines both the best value and the best quality of the entire Côte Chalonnaise appellation, with lightly earthy but well developed and intense reds that are classically austere and can benefit from aging.

The reds from the Côte Chalonnaise don’t generally offer the elegance, precision and graceful intensity of those from the Côte d’Or, nor do they have the same potential for nuance and complexity. Yet the best Côte Chalonnaise reds do convey what makes Burgundy the promised land for pinot noir wines, and often at far more affordable rates.

The Michel Julliot Estate, which has existed for four generations, cultivates 30 hectares of vines producing a large selection of the best “climats” and expositions that Mercurey has to offer as well as several Côte de Beaune Crus in Aloxe-Corton including Grand Cru Corton. Michel's grandfather (Laurent's great-grandfather) was even responsible for determining some of the boundaries of Mercurey. As Michel and son, Laurent Juillot’s wines are referenced by a great number of Michelin-starred restaurants and guaranteed by the many prizes and medals they have been awarded, the Estate’s production singularly demonstrates a philosophy of quality upheld by a family of wine makers who not only admire, but also respect their terroir.

The vine age on the Le Meix vineyard are from 25 to 57 years old. The grapes are hand harvested and carefully sorted and 100% destemmed. The wine is aged 18 months in 15% new oak. The wine offers the earth and balance of a very good Burgundy wine with the value not seen in the wines of the Co1te d’Or.